Objectives: The success of restoration plantings depends on the capacity of transplanted individuals or seeds to
establish and reproduce. It is increasingly recognized that restoration success depends quite heavily upon biotic
interactions and belowground processes. Under stressful abiotic conditions, such as soils salinized by storm surge and
sea level rise, symbiotic interactions with soil microbes such as mycorrhizae may be critically important. In this study,
we investigate the impact of salinity on percent colonization of roots by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, in addition to
the impacts of this colonization on plant ftness under saline conditions. Fifty Galactia smallii plants from an ex situ
collection were subjected to a salinity treatment for 6 weeks, and 50 plants were untreated. Plants were harvested and
assessed for percent colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, nodule number, shoot and root dry biomass, and
micronutrient content.
Results: Colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizae was higher in plants in the salinity treatment than in untreated
plants; plants in the salinity treatment were also found to have a lower root:shoot ratio, and higher phosphorus and
nitrogen levels. These results support the importance of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in restoration eforts of endangered plants in fragmented and threatened ecosystems, such as pine rocklands.

• The impact of salinity on mycorrhizal colonization of a rare legume, Galactia smallii, in South Florida pine rocklands